2015 International Agricultural Show: building synergy

The 2015 International Agricultural Show provided the perfect opportunity for INRA to create a space for science and society to meet on several levels: a dedicated INRA stand to meet and greet the public, the launch of several projects with partners, and exchange via online and social media networks.

This year, the International Agricultural Show provided several opportunities to get the conversation going between science and society:

Climate change, the theme of INRA’s stand, kicking off a year of events including two large scientific colloquia in March and July 2015, and culminating in a UN Conference on the subject. The Institute’s research on climate change and agriculture was presented at its 300m² stand, with some 135 INRA researchers over nine days illustrating their commitment to build understanding, improve adaptability and spur innovation;

International Year of Soils, with a scientific symposium dedicated to soil and its uses;

Global food security and science, agent of change in society, with the signing of a contract on the stand between the research alliance AllEnvi - of which INRA is a member - and the Commissioner General of the French Pavilion at Expo Milano 2015. The design of INRA’s stand was inspired by the French Pavilion;

The first recruitment campaigns of the year with a space dedicated to jobs and careers at INRA and a conference on employment.

Kick-offs

Several new projects were launched at the show:

Research and innovation consortium to consolidate the French bio-control sector (an INRA initiative grouping together public and private players in research, R&D and innovation);

Agreenium-IAVFF online university, with online agro-science courses;

Four agreements or contracts with the Rhone-Alps and Lorraine regions, the sugar group Tereos, and the agricultural cooperative Agrial;

Eight meetings between science and industry to discuss and pursue broad, transversal research programmes at INRA.

Online in real time

The Soil symposium and jobs conference were broadcast live online and via social media channels both in French and English, significantly expanding audience reach and encouraging remote followers to get involved in Q&A sessions. A total of 25 hours of video roll covering the whole of roundtable discussions and meetings, colloquia and different project kick-offs is available online. Overall, nine days of live broadcasting on social media in French, and partially in English, allowed the public to follow all the happenings at the INRA stand in real time, including visits from officials and partners. More than 200 photographs are featured in the image library.The show is also a privileged time to meet the press.

Agreements and projects

Contracts and project launches

The Agricultural Show is an opportunity to meet with INRA’s different partners and provide a forum for discussion. This year, several contracts were signed and projects launched. These agreements bear witness to the Institute’s diverse range of partnerships with researchers, higher education both in France and abroad, the corporate world, agricultural players, regions and territories, and society as a whole.

Agriculture, climate change, soils

In 2015, INRA’s stand at the International Agricultural Show was dedicated to climate change: the Institute’s research in this field is going full force ahead. Indeed, climate change is one of the keys to global food security.

The Show’s symposium was dedicated to soils and their uses. Soils are not only indispensable to agriculture and at the very heart of global food security, they are also quite simply an essential factor in the planet’s functions and broader cycles. Soils are also a major source of biodiversity. Now more than ever, INRA research is zooming in on this important resource.

See you in Milan

The 2015 Milan Exposition, from 1 May to 31 October, highlights a theme at the very core of current challenges: “Feed the World, Energy for Life”. Some 140 countries will participate, and 20 million visitors are expected.

The French Pavilion, made from wood from the Jura region and entirely reusable, represents a public investment of 20 million euros. It consists of 1,100m2 of covered exhibition space and an exterior pedagogical garden. The Pavilion is expected to welcome more than 1,000 visitors an hour for six months.

Throughout the duration of the World Fair, the General Commissioner of France will be holding, in tandem with the French national alliance for research on the environment (AllEnvi), a series of conference-debates on the principal themes surrounding the issue: “How can we guarantee an adequate, good-quality, healthy and sustainable diet to every person on the planet?” Some 18 INRA speakers will take the floor during these exchanges.